Covenant & Remembrance by Patrick Henry Reardon

Covenant & Remembrance

Arguably the most important component of the Bible’s Flood story is the Lord’s covenant with Noah. Indeed, it is in respect to Noah that the expression “covenant” ( b’rith) first appears in Holy Scripture. This theme of covenant is found, furthermore, at both the beginning and the end of the Flood narrative in Genesis (6:18; 9:9–17).

Especially striking in this story are three resemblances between the covenant with Noah (Gen. 9) and the Bible’s second account of the covenant with Abraham (Gen. 17). First, both of these covenants are portrayed as established gifts, or endowments. Second, both of the covenants remain God’s own property. Third, each of these two covenants is marked by a specific sign, which is called “the sign of the covenant.” Let us look at these features.

First, with respect to the covenant as an established gift, or endowment, we observe that the verbs employed in each case are natan, “to give” (Gen. 9:12; 17:2), and haqim, “to establish” (9:9,11; 17:7). The first of these verbs, “give,” emphasizes the generosity of God’s act in making the covenant; it is pure, unmerited grace. The second verb, “establish,” places the accent on God’s steadfast resolve. The covenant is perpetually established; it is an “everlasting” covenant (9:16; 17:7). In the covenants with Noah and Abraham, then, there is an infallible pledge of perpetual hope.

THIS ARTICLE ONLY AVAILABLE TO SUBSCRIBERS.
FOR QUICK ACCESS:


Patrick Henry Reardon is pastor emeritus of All Saints Antiochian Orthodox Church in Chicago, Illinois, and the author of numerous books, including, most recently, Out of Step with God: Orthodox Christian Reflections on the Book of Numbers (Ancient Faith Publishing, 2019).

Print &
Online Subscription

Get six issues (one year) of Touchstone PLUS full online access including pdf downloads for only $39.95. That's only $3.34 per month!

Online
Subscription

Get a one-year full-access subscription to the Touchstone online archives for only $19.95. That's only $1.66 per month!

bulk subscriptions

Order Touchstone subscriptions in bulk and save $10 per sub! Each subscription includes 6 issues of Touchstone plus full online access to touchstonemag.com—including archives, videos, and pdf downloads of recent issues for only $29.95 each! Great for churches or study groups.

Transactions will be processed on a secure server.


more from the online archives

25.4—July/August 2012

All the Lonely People

The Corrosive & Far-Reaching Fallout of the Sexual Revolution by Anthony Esolen

32.6—November/December 2019

Strategic Christians

The Year of Our Lord 1943: Christian Humanism in an Age of Crisis by Alan Jacobs by Jesse Russell

29.2—March/April 2016

Family Phases

The History of Family Strength in America May Reveal Good News by Allan C. Carlson

calling all readers

Please Donate

"There are magazines worth reading but few worth saving . . . Touchstone is just such a magazine."
—Alice von Hildebrand

"Here we do not concede one square millimeter of territory to falsehood, folly, contemporary sentimentality, or fashion. We speak the truth, and let God be our judge. . . . Touchstone is the one committedly Christian conservative journal."
—Anthony Esolen, Touchstone senior editor

Support Touchstone

00